Indiana University halts printing of student newspaper amid director's firing

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (WDRB) -- Indiana University student journalists can no longer print their newspaper after the faculty adviser refused to keep news stories out of a homecoming edition.

The editorial staff of the Indiana Daily Student is rallying around former Director of Student Media Jim Rodenbush after his termination.

According to a Letter from the Editor published by IDS, IU directed the IDS to stop printing news in their newspaper and only print the special editions, usually tied to campus events. When Rodenbush resisted, the university fired him, the letter said. And when the newspaper staff asked them to rescind the termination order, IU cut print entirely.

"I had to make the decision that was going to allow me to live with myself," Rodenbush told The Associated Press. "I don't have any regrets whatsoever. In the current environment we're in, somebody has to stand up."

IDS Editors Mia Hilkowitz and Andrew Miller said the termination was a scare tactic toward student journalists and faculty, adding what they can and cannot print is unlawful censorship.

“IU has no legal right to dictate what we can and cannot print in our paper,” Miller said.

"They're trying to silence student voices," Theo Hawkins, editor-in-chief of the Arbutus Yearbook, said. "We're the ones who are covering the things that are going on with the school, the things that are going on with the administration, and that includes things that don't necessarily make them look good."

But the university maintains it was just a business decision. The university released a statement, saying it's "firmly committed to the free expression and editorial independence of student media. The university hasn't and won't interfere with their editorial judgement."

The university also said the campus is shifting from print to digital this week for students' educational experience and to address financial challenges.

The student-led newspaper was founded in 1867 and has been honored as one of the best college publications in the nation.

Late last year, university officials announced they were scaling back the cash-strapped newspaper’s print edition from a weekly to seven special editions per semester, usually when there are campus events, like Homecoming and the IU football game on Saturday.

The paper published three print editions this fall, inserting special event sections, Rodenbush said. Last month, Media School officials started asking why the special editions still contained news, he told The Associated Press.

Rodenbush said IU Media School Dean David Tolchinsky told him earlier this month the expectation was print editions would contain no news. Tolchinsky argued Rodenbush was essentially the paper’s publisher and could decide what to run, Rodenbush said. He told the dean that publishing decisions were the students’ alone, he said.

Tolchinsky fired him Tuesday, two days before the homecoming print edition was set to be published, and announced the end of all Indiana Daily Student print publications.

“Your lack of leadership and ability to work in alignment with the University’s direction for the Student Media Plan is unacceptable,” Tolchinsky wrote in Rodenbush’s termination letter.

Rodenbush said that he wasn’t aware of any single story the student newspaper has published that may have provoked administrators. But he speculated the moves may be part of a “general progression” of administrators trying to protect the university from any negative publicity.

The newspaper is allowed to continue publishing stories on its website.

More Indiana News:

Bird flu cases confirmed in several Indiana counties

Jackson County to pay more than $5M to family of Louisville mother who died in jail's custody

Indiana extends Cignetti through 2033, making him one of college football's highest-paid coaches